HOMESTEAD, FLA. (WSVN) - A South Florida police officer has taken a plea deal in connection to a 2025 hit-and-run crash in Homestead that left two people injured and led to his arrest on charges of driving under the influence.
7News cameras captured Homestead Police Officer Henry Quintero as he stood before Miami-Dade Circuit Court Judge Andrea Ricker Wolfson, Friday morning.
“I understand you wish to plead guilty to two counts of DUI with damage to property or person, reckless driving and leaving the scene of an accident with property samage — all misdemeanor charges — in exchange for the plea read into the record,” said Ricker Wolfson.
Quintero was arrested on charges of leaving the scene of a crash with injuries, DUI and reckless driving in connection to the Sept. 2 crash.
As part of the plea deal, that first charge of leaving the scene, a felony, was dismissed.
According to the Miami-Dade Sheriff’s Office, Quintero was traveling in the area of East Palm Drive and U.S. 1 when he ran a red light and crashed into another car, causing it to flip over and crash into another vehicle.
Witnesses told deputies they saw Quintero briefly before he made a U-turn into oncoming traffic and driving off without helping the victims.
Detectives said those victims were hurt, but they’re OK.
Ron Perry, one of the victims from that crash, recalled the moments leading up to it.
“Vehicles are all around and next thing you know, he just blew the light and Bronco is coming right through the side of the car,” said Perry.
Perry was coming back home from a trip to the Florida Keys when it happened. He said he watched Quintero flee from the scene.
“He turned and made a U-turn and tried to flee in the opposite direction,” said Perry.
Traffic cameras captured the crash, as well as Quintero fleeing eastbound on East Palm Drive before, authorities said, he stopped near the entrance of an apartment complex.
Investigators said that when deputies caught up to the defendant, they smelled alcohol on his breath, but he refused to do a sobriety test.
Perry told 7News Quintero’s actions from that day were stunning, especially after learning he was a police officer.
“It’s not something you expect every day, yet alone being an officer of the law, you know, out here doing things like this in the middle of the afternoon,” said Perry.
Since the September crash, Perry has put the incident behind him.
“Never wanna go through it again. Like I said, nobody deserves to go through anything like that; it’s traumatizing. My kids could’ve been in the car,” said Perry.
The plea deal Quintero accepted requires him to be on probation and pay several fines.
His attorney, Mark Lefcourt, spoke about the outcome of this case.
“The state attorney’s office dismissed the felony [charge], and long story short, Henry has served our country in the military, he’s been 20 years as a decorated police officer,” said Lefcourt. “What happened here is one bad day, and I’m fortunate to be here with him today and to rectify the felony charge and to otherwise make sure that one bad day does not affect him for the rest of his life.”
The Homestead Police Department shared a statement with 7News, stating that while the court proceedings have wrapped up, the department’s own administrative reviews are proceeding.
Quintero was suspended without pay following his arrest.
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